Second Chakra Soup (roasted carrot, pumpkin and chickpea)

This is a soup that will get both your creative and digestive juices flowing! Packed with orange coloured foods that provide an abundance of antioxidants, vitamins, fiber and phytonutrients in that are good for your skin, eyes and heart.

For the Chakra-conscious, this is a vital recipe for the second chakra (Swadhisthana) where it is believed that orange foods help to balance and rejuvenate this home of creativity, vitality, passion and joy. Read more here.
Who doesn’t want to boost all of that?

What you need:

1 small butternut pumpkin (diced)

3 large carrots (cut into small strips)

2 tablespoon coconut oil

4 cloves garlic

Small sprig fresh coriander (chopped)

1 small onion (diced)

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

1 can organic chickpeas (drained)

Salt and pepper to taste

1.5 L filtered water

What you do:

Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Place carrot, garlic and pumpkin on large roasting tray which you’ve greased with coconut oil. Sprinkle with cumin and paprika and roast for about 45 minutes.
Meanwhile heat 1 tablespoon coconut oil in large saucepan and sauté onions in high heat until almost caramelised. Add in chopped coriander and turmeric and turn down heat. Add roasted veges. Add filtered water, chickpeas and salt and pepper and allow to gently simmer for 10 minutes.

Blend soup with hand blender or traditional blender (be careful with the latter – this method has seen me cleaning my kitchen for days if the soup’s too hot!!), return to stove, season again if needed and enjoy!
Serves 6